>Hi Tamar,
>
>>Using "black" or "white" or "tall" or "short" to describe someone so others can find them or visualize them isn't insulting. But combining those descriptive words with pejorative words, in my view, makes the pejorative stronger and more offensive, especially if the pejorative word is part of a stereotype about the group identified by the descriptive word. So, for example (trying to choose one that's less inflammatory than some others), describing someone as a "blonde airhead" is offensive to blondes generally, while describing someone as an "airhead" is about only the individual so described.
>
>Personally, I don't see how a statement like "blond airhead" is offensive to all blonds. It still describes one individual. It would be different when you say "All blondes are airheads".

I think it comes up when it's unnecessary. You do not need to say "blond" when you call someone an airhead. Using it means you wish to draw attention to the fact that she is blond, not for identification, but because you feel some bias towards blonds. It's a fine line, but one of those I learned while dating the black girl.